LBE Valve Seats & Guides

The site navigation utilizes arrow, enter, escape, and space bar key commands. Left and right arrows move across top level links and expand / close menus in sub levels. Up and Down arrows will open main level menus and toggle through sub tier links. Enter and space open menus and escape closes them as well. Tab will move on to the next part of the site rather than go through menu items.

Powder Metal Technology for Superior Wear Resistance

Tenneco’s Valve Seats and Guides (VSG) product line develops valve seat inserts (VSI) as well as valve guides (VG). Parts are manufactured utilizing Powder Metal technology for applications up to 65 mm VSI outer diameter and 125mm VG length.

Powder Metal (PM) is a near-net shape primary shaping technology with efficiency advantages compared to casting. With superior wear resistance based on tailored mechanical and tribological properties, valve seat insert and valve temperature reduction by high thermal conductivity and the oil-impregnated Powder Metal intrinsic porosities providing liquid lubrication under all running conditions, PM valve seats and guides are already in use with several LBE customers.

Tenneco’s material portfolio for VSI and VG covers a wide range from cost-efficient, lower-alloyed materials up to highly alloyed grades including copper infiltration, machinability enhancers, solid lubricants, hard phases and hard particles. The portfolio also includes densified materials for outstanding mechanical properties and highly corrosion-resistant alloys.

PM production technology enables for a so-called dual layer VSI design for the purpose of cost reduction, which consists of an optimized back layer material with high mechanical strength against plastic deformation under high thermal and mechanical load, and relaxation properties on par with or above cast materials. The top layer material is optimized for low wear and tailored tribological properties in combination with the mating valve head material.